India at war with itself in Chhattisgarh
BBC News,
Dantewada, Chhattisgarh
It was the worst example I've ever seen. A
fiasco. They didn't stand a chance."
Thus runs retired
Brigadier BK Ponwar's brutal assessment of an ambush by Maoist rebels -
known locally as Naxalites - which killed 76 paramilitary policemen in
Dantewada earlier this year.
A
similar attack was staged on Tuesday, when a further 26 policemen were
killed in another attack in the same region.
The
attack which killed the 76 was the highest loss of life for the
security forces in any single attack during the insurgency, which the
government calls India's "biggest internal security challenge".
Brig
Ponwar runs Chhattisgarh's Counter Terrorism and Jungle Warfare
College, which is teaching thousands of police personnel how to fight in
the remote forests where the Maoists hold sway.
None
of the 76 men who died had been on one of his courses. But it is the
police who are leading the fight against the insurgency. 'Essential'
And over the last few months the
government has gone on the offensive against the Maoists.
Once you oppose the
violations of human rights and the non-fulfilment of promises on even
the most basic welfare programmes, you become the enemy of the state.
Rajendra Sail Lawyer in
Chhattisgarh
"Of course there have
to be economic and political measures as well," Brig Ponwar says,
between bursts of gunfire on a dusty shooting range.
"But
military action is also essential," he adds.
"The
other side is following the philosophy of 'power flows from the barrel
of the gun'. We have to twist [the insurgents'] military arm, and only
then will [they] start talking."
After
a sudden increase in Maoist counter-attacks in the last few months,
there has been pressure to deploy the army or even the air force in this
campaign.
For
the moment, that pressure has been resisted.
But
in the vast forests of central India, there is no doubt that the state
is now trying to reassert control by force.
"If they fight against their own people,
they will never win," argues Himanshu
Kumar, who worked with tribal communities on rural development projects
in Dantewada for years.
A
few months ago he fled to Delhi, fearing harassment or worse from
powerful local officials.
"These areas were always kept neglected,
and the tribals faced exploitation. So the Naxalites
grew there," he says.
"If there was peace and comfort, no-one
would want to fight."
'Made inroads' But out in the jungles the Maoists are training as well.
They may have as many
as 20,000 men and women at arms - not as well equipped as the security
forces, but familiar with the terrain, and with the hit-and-run tactics
of roadside bombs and ambushes.
Their plan, unlikely as it sounds, is to
overthrow the Indian state by 2050.
The
Maoists have made inroads in nearly a third of India's 630 districts, but they are at their strongest in six central and
eastern states which have been dubbed the "Red Corridor".
They
have killed a growing number of civilians in their attacks, but they
have also been spreading their message in places where the state has
become perilously weak and unpopular.
The
authorities have responded by accusing many human rights groups of
failing to criticise terrorism.
"Civil
society has been exposing the activities of the state," says Rajendra
Sail, a prominent lawyer in Chhattisgarh.
"Once you oppose the violations of human
rights and the non-fulfilment of promises on even the most basic
welfare programmes, you become the enemy of the state."
And for many tribal communities in rural
Chhattisgarh the state is either absent, or it is part of the problem.
'Not welcome'
In the village of
Dhura the soil is fertile and the crops are good.
There in no quick solution to the
insurgency
Bullocks are pulling
handmade wooden ploughs, and children are planting corn seeds.
But
this land has been promised to one of India's largest companies, Tata
Steel, for a new steel plant.
It
is the kind of big development project the government believes can turn
the tide in long-neglected regions.
But
in Dhuragaon, at least, the attention isn't welcome.
"We don't want to sell our land," says Sree Ram, a village leader.
"We
keep saying no, and they just don't listen. What would you do if
someone wants to take away something you don't want to give?"
Manisfest failings
The villagers say they
will fight within the law, but some protests against the steel plant
have turned violent.
Rural poverty has provided the bedrock of
Maoist support
It is exactly the kind
of resentment and alienation which the Maoists rely upon to bolster
their cause.
At a
local tribal market, people are selling vegetables as well as the nuts
and berries they have gathered in the forests.
For
all its manifest failings the Maoist movement seems to understand what
makes many of these people tick.
But
the government still believes the right kind of development is the
answer.
"The
Maoists don't want development to take place, because keeping the
people illiterate and underdeveloped suits them," argues India's Home
Secretary GK Pillai.
He
admits that for years officials in Delhi
have been guilty of under-estimating the threat the Maoists pose. Not any more, he declares.
"They
don't believe in parliamentary democracy," he says, "and they want to
overthrow the state by force. We have to stand up to that."
So
it is a clash of ideologies, in some of this country's poorest places.
The
government knows there is no quick fix solution. It will take years to
resolve.
"Two
to three years to turn the tide," Mr Pillai insists, "and another few
years before we can effectively control them."
But
many people still question the government's tactics.
And
in this land of natural beauty, far from the big cities, India is at
war with itself.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/south_asia/10446513.stm
Thanks & Regards,
Sudhir Srinivasan
B.Arch, Dip.ID, Dip.CAD, Dip.PM, AIIA, IIID, ARIAI
| Architect |
